2

“Never let ’em know your next move. Don’t you know Bad Boys move in silence an’ violence?”

-“Ten Crack Commandments,” Notorious B.I.G.

1985

A year passed since Lil Nut entered the drug game. Now, at sixteen, he was older and definitely wiser. No longer did he keep his stash in a shoebox in his closet. He had his mother open up a safe deposit box at the Citibank up on Nostrand Avenue, not too far from Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Lil Nut stood in the freezing cold weather, fresh to death in a gray sheepskin from Delancey Street, a new pair of gray Clarks, and a Kangol hat. His longing for the rope chains or Atari games were a thing of the past. Lil Nut reasoned that those things attracted the wrong type of attention. And even though he wasn’t a sucker, he didn’t want beef with the local stickup kids each and every day. Speaking of stickup kids, Lil Nut had yet to find out who stuck him up and threatened his mother’s life. He swore on his own life that he would find out who did it, and no matter who it was—friend or family—they were as good as dead.

Lil Nut had a new cause to believe in now. He couldn’t wait until he’d saved up enough money to buy a used Mercedes Benz 500SL. At his young age he didn’t realize, or he chose not to realize that Benzes also attracted the wrong type of attention. Blue Bug offered to sell Nut his for eighteen thousand dollars, but Nut didn’t want to ride around in what the hood all knew was Blue Bug’s ride. He wanted his own ride and his own identity. He now felt that he was too big to be working for a motherfucker who wasn’t much older than him.

As Lil Nut stood on the corner of Pitkin and Dumont Avenues eating a piece of chicken from the Chinese restaurant, he smelled the pungent odor before he recognized the voice. “Take off your motherfucking sheepskin before I put two in ya head!”

The pressure Nut felt at his waist was alarming, but he felt confident that this wasn’t a threat.

“Do it!”

Lil Nut turned around to face his father. He looked at the man’s face and saw his own. Milton was still strung out on crack, which disappointed and embarrassed his son. The two hadn’t seen each other since their altercation over a year ago. The usually heavy Milton had almost withered away to nothing. His smooth chocolate skin was scarred with acne, and his beautiful smile had been replaced with corroding teeth and neglected gums. Milton wore a thin trench coat that was tattered and torn with a Champion sweatshirt, sagging jeans, and a pair of oversized penny loafers without any socks. Yet despite his appearance, he still managed to greet his son with a smile.

“Boy, let me feel ya heart beating.” Milton laughed and tucked the small pipe back into his coat pocket. That pipe had gotten Milton high on many occasions.

“You know fear don’t pump through my veins,” Nut said.

“That’s ’cause I raised you to be a man and stand up for yourself.”

“My mother raised me!” Lil Nut yelled, and then stepped closer to his father. The two men were so close that when Lil Nut spoke, spit flew out of his mouth and landed on Milton’s face. “Now get the fuck outta my face before I give you a severe beat-down.”

Unaffected by his son’s outburst, Milton stood stone still. “I heard what happened last year with you and my wife. You take care of that problem yet?”

Lil Nut realized that even though he ran around terrorizing his own neighborhood, his father was a man and had a heart of steel. Nut also realized now that his father only backed down to him last year out of love, and not out of fear.

“How you hear about that?” Lil Nut asked.

“I hear everything.”

“Why the fuck you ain’t come around?”

“I’m always around. You just don’t see me.”

“So you be ghost?”

“Something like that.” Milton took his hands out of his pockets and began to blow inside them in an effort to keep warm. “How long before you take care of that situation? Ain’t right that a man gotta hear about his wife having a gun thrust in her face and the men responsible still breathing. Now I done gave you long enough to handle that. I did that so that you could feel like a man since you want to play like a man. I’m not gonna give you much longer—”

“How the fuck you sound?” Lil Nut exploded. “You not gonna—”

“Your biggest problem was letting motherfuckers know where you keep your stash. You lucky those niggas didn’t R.I.P you and my wife. Now I’m not gonna tell you twice to rock those motherfuckers to sleep!”

Lil Nut couldn’t believe his ears. His father was a stone cold crackhead, and he was barking orders to his son.

“You talking like I know who set me up and I’m giving them a pass! If I ever find out who did this shit to me and Ma, I’ma send them to meet their maker!”

His father just stood there staring his son in his eyes, trying to glean whether he was telling the truth. Once he was satisfied, he began walking away. Over his shoulder he yelled, “Keep your ears open. Those stupid motherfuckers will slip up!”

Lil Nut was pissed. His father was talking as if he knew who’d set him up, yet he wasn’t telling him. Lil Nut also expected his father to ask him for money, but was surprised that he didn’t. He certainly could use money, a hot shower, clean clothes, a hot meal, and a warm bed.

A couple hours later Lil Nut looked down at the telephone number code 500 and the 911 emergency page. It was Lamiek, and Lil Nut couldn’t understand what the urgency was. Doing a slow stroll to the corner payphone, he punched in the digits.

“What?” Lil Nut asked.

“Whatchu doin’ tonight?”

“Damn, you had me run to the fucking phone to ask a silly-ass question? I thought you were getting pounded on by motherfuckers!”

“Shit. I was standing by this phone for twenty minutes. Your punk ass took forever to call me back.”

“Whatever, man. What’s the 911 for?”

“My girl is having a house party tonight and she wants me to come through with a few friends. Meet me at eight on Pitkin and Belmont.”

“Where’s the party?”

“At her crib on Lafayette Avenue. She’s not too far from Dekalb.”

“OK, but since she’s so close to the movies, we should go see Krush Groove with The Fat Boys. I’ve been fiending to see that for a while now. Maybe you can bring ya girl.”

“A’ight, I’ll ask her.”

Lil Nut was excited to go to the house party and then to the movies. Yesterday he went down to Delancey Street and bought a new three-quarter leather jacket. It was almost full-length and cost $220. He was the first in his neighborhood to own one. The coat was burgundy, and he had a pair of burgundy Lee jeans that he would sport with it. He couldn’t wait to get some new pussy. He was tired of sleeping with all the girls around his way. He wanted to hook up with someone new, and he was sure with his fresh clothes and knot of money he planned on taking to the party, he’d pull someone sexy.

At home he ate a large plate of baked macaroni and cheese, pork chops, and collard greens his mother had cooked. Now that his father wasn’t home, his mother doted upon him night and day. Even though she smiled, Lil Nut could still see the pain in her eyes. She missed her husband. Even though it gave her pleasure to clean her son’s room, cook his food, and wash his clothes, her son couldn’t hold her at night when she was feeling lonely.

Lil Nut wondered briefly if he should tell his mother that he saw his father. He figured that he should because at least she’d know he was still alive. There were so many crackheads being murdered daily behind the dumb shit they pulled. In the past, Lil Nut never pegged his father to be stupid, but getting caught up in the crack epidemic was the dumbest shit Lil Nut thought a person could do, although their stupidity did provide his riches.

“Ma, I saw Milton today,” Lil Nut said.

Julie swung around to face her son. “You mean your father.”

Lil Nut shrugged.

“Mind your manners. No matter what, his blood still runs through your veins, and he deserves your respect.”

“Do you still love him?”

“Do you?”

“I asked you first.”

“If he walked through that door today sober, I’d take him back. That’s my man, and I will love him until the day I die. You better only wish you find a wife who will love you the way I love your father.”

Lil Nut thought about what his mother said. And he did wish he had a girl who would love him like his mother loved his dad, but it seemed like all the girls in his neighborhood only loved his money. Lil Nut didn’t mind sharing his newfound wealth with the ladies. He’d already purchased Gloria Vanderbilt jeans, Gerry G jackets, and leather Nikes for a few girls. But all that was nothing compared to what he’d do when he met his future wife.

Before getting robbed last year, Lil Nut would have taken three hundred dollars with him to the party to front, but now he wasn’t that dumb. Instead he took one twenty-dollar bill and wrapped it around eighty one-dollar bills. Now he actually had a knot of money, only it wasn’t what people would think it was.

Later that night the cold weather had Lil Nut stressed. He felt like he was too old to be walking. And why the fuck didn’t any of his friends have rides? He finally realized that he was a spring-summer type of dude. The tropical weather inspired him, and that was when he made the most money. Now he understood what his father meant when he used to say that the cold weather was for making babies.

“Yo, you ready, man?” Lamiek asked.

“Nigga, I was born ready,” Lil Nut responded and tapped his jacket to let Lamiek know he was carrying his pistol. When Lite emerged from the shadows, Lil Nut was pissed. “What the fuck he doing here?”

Lite put up his hands in surrender. “It ain’t even like that, man. I don’t got no beef with you.”

Hearing the plea in his voice, Lil Nut felt exhilarated. Ever since he shot Lite last year and earned a ruthless reputation, secretly he wondered if Lite would seek revenge. He’d watched all the obligatory gangster films that addressed whether it was better to be feared or loved, and Lil Nut decided that he loved being feared.

“We cool then,” Lil Nut said.

“Why you got all dressed up to see my girl?” Lamiek asked with a smirk on his face.

Lil Nut had changed clothes three times before settling on his new three-quarter leather jacket, a leather Gucci suit from Dapper Dan’s in Harlem, and new burgundy and white suede Puma sneakers with thick white laces. He could see the jealousy and envy in Lamiek’s eyes.

“This ain’t about your girl. You know I stay fresh.”

“Yeah, so I guess the drug game is being better to you than my profession. Maybe I should retire?”

“Maybe you should and come work for me.”

Lamiek was disgusted. “Work for you? Nigga, I been running my own enterprise since I was twelve. What the fuck I look like coming to work for you?”

“Shit, you won’t be the first motherfucker working for me.”

Lil Nut didn’t give a fuck about Lamiek’s outburst. He knew that he was soft like butter.

“Yo, chill, man,” Lite began. “I hope y’all don’t blow my high. I got a nickel bag of the best weed from Fulton today. Lil Nut, you should start moving weed.”

Lil Nut shook his head. “Ain’t enough money in that for me. With weed money I can buy me a hooptie. With crack money I can buy me a Benz. I’ve been saving up money to buy me my own ride. Soon I should be able to buy me a Benz!”

Lamiek had Benz visions as well, but he didn’t have the capital to get one. He knew in order to execute his plan, he’d need backup.

“Listen, how we look walking to this party?” Lamiek asked. “Damn, flag down a cab. I don’t want my sneakers to get all scuffed.”

Lil Nut looked down at Lamiek’s British Walkers and Lite’s Travel Fox shoe-boots and shook his head. “Yo, why y’all niggas be buying those bullshit footwear? Y’all not Jamaican. If y’all want something fresh, then y’all should get the new Wallabies.”

“Now you think you can tell me how to dress?” Lamiek asked. “This motherfucker here . . .” Lamiek spat and shook his head in disgust.

Lite ran into the street to hail a gypsy cab. Five minutes later a driver stopped. Lamiek ran off the address and then got down to business. “I got a plan that if done properly we can all make a lot of money. Enough to buy us all rides.”

“What type of rides?” Lite asked.

“Benzes.”

“Get the fuck out of here!” Lil Nut replied.

“I’m telling you”—Lamiek lowered his voice—“that if we rob Blue Bug we could make a fortune.”

“Are you crazy?” Lite asked.

“Nah, I ain’t crazy. Shit, you scared? He bleed like we bleed.”

Lil Nut thought about the proposition, and although he wasn’t into taking money, his ill feelings toward Blue Bug resurfaced, and visions of his own robbery crept back up. For all Lil Nut knew, Blue Bug could have set him up. He had to work three weeks without any profit in order to pay back Blue Bug. That was free labor.

“I’m just saying that Blue Bug ain’t the average cat to be running up on with a burner,” Lite commented.

“If I can get got, then fuck it, he can get got too,” Lil Nut spat.

“Don’t act like you got heart ’cause you caught wreck off Lite,” Lamiek said. “Blue Bug is a different type of motherfucker. He appears to be all polite and nice, but cross that motherfucker and he’ll do more than punch your bitch ass in the nuts!” Lamiek replied, trying to embarrass Lil Nut.

Lil Nut didn’t respond. He was too busy trying to hide his emotions and steady his breathing. How the fuck would Lamiek know that the gunmen who robbed his stash and pistol whipped him and his mother had punched him in his nuts unless he was one of the three? No doubt, Lite was two out of the three. His father told him that if he listened, he’d find out who set him up. And he had also promised his father once he found out who put his hands on his mother, he would take them off this earth.

“Fuck Blue Bug! I’m telling you he can get got!” Lil Nut stated, keeping his newfound knowledge to himself for now.

“OK, let’s meet tomorrow and talk about this. You know I’m down,” Lamiek said. He, too, was trying to steady his voice and get his heart to slow its pace. He wondered if Lil Nut had caught his slip about him getting punched in his balls. Lamiek feared what Lil Nut would do to him if he knew that he and Lite had set him up last year. Yeah, Lil Nut shot Lite as target practice, but Lamiek feared that Lil Nut didn’t need further practice. If pushed, he would shoot to kill.

When the cab driver pulled onto the block of the party, before the car could come to a complete stop, Lamiek and Lite both opened their doors and dashed out. Lil Nut hesitated for a second, and then followed suit. On the second block, Lil Nut ran out of his new Puma sneaker. He didn’t give a fuck whether the driver gave chase or not, he was not losing a pair of forty-dollar sneakers for an eight-dollar cab ride. Besides, if the cab driver got stupid, Lil Nut was prepared to back him down with his gun.

Lil Nut slowed down, turned around, and realized that the cab driver wasn’t anywhere in sight. Lil Nut shook his head because the driver had done the right thing. He realized that his life was worth more than eight dollars. After putting his sneaker back on, he adjusted his clothes and stood there for a few minutes to see if Lamiek and Lite would come back looking for him. When they didn’t, he walked back around to the party.

Eddie Murphy’s “Party All The Time” was blasting from the first-floor apartment. Lil Nut knew if they kept playing music like that, he wasn’t going to be staying long. His tap on the door turned into a bang because no one could hear him. That was when he decided to turn the knob on the door and it opened. He walked in to see about thirty people crammed into the small living room, drinking, smoking, kissing, and grinding to the music. Some of the guests looked up to see who’d just entered the apartment, but most didn’t. His eyes perused the apartment, looking to see if Lamiek and Lite had somehow gotten there first, but they hadn’t. Those suckers are probably still running, Lil Nut thought.

A sexy, shapely girl made a beeline directly for Lil Nut. Her smile was welcoming as she extended her hand, “Hi. My name is GG. How did you hear about my party?”

“Oh, my man Lamiek told—”

“Now how can we both have the same man?” GG asked and then giggled. Lil Nut didn’t understand her humor, but he smiled anyway. He didn’t want to be rude. “Where is my guy anyway?”

“He should be here shortly.”

“Good. Do you want me to take your coat?”

Lil Nut didn’t have any intention of giving her his coat. That was how motherfuckers got jacked. They piled all the jackets on the bed in a dark room while the unsuspecting sucker got high off weed and liquor, and by the end of the night someone had walked out with his shit. The local thieves would go around the neighborhood, sell the coat, and then come back and give the girl who helped set it up a cut. Lil Nut was far from a dummy. And he’d hate to have to put his hands on a girl, so to avoid all of that, he simply shook his head.

“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea that you hold on to it. I would hate to be responsible for such an expensive item. No telling what could go on in here.”

GG walked off with a smile, but inwardly she was pissed. She and her brother, Chris, had plans to steal as many coats and sheepskin hats as possible. She knew her brother could have sold Lil Nut’s coat for at least ninety dollars, and she would have gotten half. So far they were scheming on two sheepskins and a leather bomber jacket.

GG inched over to Chris, who was surveying the room, and whispered in his ear. His eyes darted toward Lil Nut, who was standing close to the door.

“Who he with?”

“He’s with Lamiek.”

“What’s his name?” her brother asked.

“I didn’t ask.”

“Why the fuck not?”

“I don’t know. I just didn’t. What’s the big deal?”

“’Cause if he has a name that rings a bell, then I’ll know what I’m up against. If he’s a sucker, then I can stick him up in the hallway no problem. But if he’s known to be trigger happy, then it could get ugly and I might have to pass. I don’t want no problems in front of Mommy’s door,” Chris said.

“OK, I understand. I’ll find out more from Lamiek.”

“Nah, that greedy motherfucker gonna wanna be down, and I already got to split shit with you. Let me clock this nigga on my own. If he seems soft by the end of the night, then I’m gonna diss him and take his shit.”

“Oh, and don’t forget to get me Samantha’s Gucci bag.”

“Samantha? Ain’t she your friend?”

“Fuck that bitch. Now that she got that bag she thinks she’s flyer than me,” GG said.

“Well how you gonna wear that bag in front of her? She’s gonna know it’s her bag.”

“Let me worry about that. All you gotta do is get me her bag!”

GG walked off because she saw Lamiek walk through the door. He and Lite were regulars at her apartment when her mother wasn’t home, which was often.

“Hey, baby!” GG said. She wrapped her hands around his neck and gave him a juicy kiss. She could tell that she’d interrupted a heated debate between Lamiek and the guy in the burgundy coat.

“GG, this my man Lil Nut from Pitkin.”

“We’ve already met.” GG was now nervous. She had to warn her brother not to try anything stupid with Lil Nut from Pitkin. Chances were that he would be carrying a pistol, and from his reputation he wasn’t afraid to use it. She was sure that if he got robbed at her party, he would definitely come back looking for her. And she knew her punk boyfriend wouldn’t be able to help her. Although he pulled guns on people almost daily to rob them, he was no killer.

GG’s friend Samantha had been eyeing Lil Nut since he’d walked through the door. So had almost every female in the place. Now was her chance to meet him.

“GG, this party is fresh,” Samantha said, approaching her friend.

“You know it,” GG bragged. “Samantha, you know my man, Lamiek. And these are his friends, Lite and Lil Nut.”

Everyone exchanged pleasantries and then Samantha pulled GG to the side to talk.

“What’s up with Lil Nut?” she asked.

“I don’t know. I just met him. Why? You like him?”

“Well, he is cute.”

Samantha wasn’t fooling GG. Lil Nut was dark-skinned, and everyone knew that it was all about the light-skinned niggas with the good hair. She knew her friend was only interested in Lil Nut’s pockets.

“Ain’t nothing cute about that motherfucker, but he seems to have some money,” GG said.

“No, for real, he is cute. You’re not taking a good look at him. His eyes and his lips . . . and I can only imagine what his body looks like under that coat.”

“So go for yours,” GG encouraged.

“You think I should ask him to dance?”

“What’s that gonna do? If you really want to get to know him, take him in my room and get busy,” GG said.

Samantha wasn’t down with that. She didn’t readily give away her pussy like GG did. She decided that it would be best to ask him to dance, and was happy when he accepted. The DJ put on the smash hit “I Can’t Live Without My Radio” by LL Cool J, and the crowd went berserk. They both started off doing the Smurf on the crowded dance floor, and then ended up simply grinding.

As everyone passed joints of weed, Samantha was happy to see that Lil Nut didn’t smoke. And neither did she. Although they both drank, they both decided against it that night. For some reason they were both on high alert and wanted to be prepared for anything. Samantha was thinking about her Gucci bag and nameplate earrings that her parents bought her, and Lil Nut was thinking about his coat and reputation. If he allowed himself to get robbed twice, he would never live it down.

After trying to hear each other over the loud music, Lil Nut and Samantha moved their conversation to the hallway.

“What grade are you in?” Lil Nut asked as they sat on the steps of the six-story tenement building.

“I’m a junior at Fashion Industries high school.”

“Where’s that?”

“I live in Harlem, not too far from the Apollo Theatre, but my school is on Twenty-fourth Street in Manhattan.”

“Word? What are you doing in Brooklyn?”

“I used to live in Brooklyn when I was a child, and then my parents moved back to Harlem. My father was born and raised in Harlem. He only moved to Brooklyn because of my mother. They stayed for eight years, and then he couldn’t take it any longer.”

“It was too rough for him?”

“Nah, not even. Harlem is just as rough if not more ruthless than Brooklyn, but their priorities are different. And my father couldn’t understand the Brooklyn mentality.”

“And what mentality is that?”

“Well first off he couldn’t get down with the Five Percent Nation—”

“Me too!” Lil Nut replied, and then shook his head.

“But you hang with Lamiek.”

Lil Nut wanted to reply, but couldn’t. His stomach did somersaults because flashbacks of his mother being pistol-whipped flashed into his head. He knew what he had to do.

Samantha continued. “And he was used to men in Harlem making their own money to take care of their families. By the time a man turned eighteen, he was starting a business of some sort. Whether it was a record store, fish fry, or clothing store, they were doing it themselves. In Brooklyn, the common thread was taking money, not making money, and that’s not my father’s style. He’s old school.”

As Lil Nut listened he began to admire a man and lifestyle he didn’t know. And he also began to take interest in Samantha. Although her friend GG was cuter by any man’s standards, Samantha definitely had a head on her shoulders.

“What are your plans when you graduate?” he asked.

“I’m going to nursing school. I want to be an RN just like my mother.”

“You know, I don’t know not one person who’s in the medical profession,” Lil Nut replied. He looked off in space and began to think about what he wanted to do with himself. Eighteen was steadily approaching, and from what Samantha had said about her father, Lil Nut should be thinking about opening up a business or something. “You’re really impressing me tonight,” he said.

She smiled. “I really like you too.”

“Do you have a beeper?”

“No. My parents don’t like those, but you can call me on my house phone.”

“I’ma get you a beeper,” Lil Nut promised. “That way when I need you you’ll be there for me.”

Samantha was excited about how the night was turning out. She had permission to stay the weekend over GG’s house, and she hoped that she could see Lil Nut again before she went home on Sunday morning. After they exchanged telephone numbers, he leaned in to kiss her. Samantha thought about how soft his lips were as his mouth slightly parted and his tongue slid inside her mouth. Neither one of them heard the outside door open, but when the cold air enveloped them they both knew they had company. They stopped kissing and looked up to see two stocky men. Each had hoodies on their heads and their hands stuffed deeply into their pockets. Instantly Samantha was afraid.

One guy spoke up first. “Is this where the house party at?”

Lil Nut nodded.

“Yo, you look familiar,” the guy said to Nut. “Where I know you from? What’s your name?”

Lil Nut grimaced. “Nah, duke, you don’t know me.”

“You sure? I swear I know you from somewhere.”

As the guy spoke, both inched in closer and began to surround the couple. Lil Nut tried to put his hand on his gun, but was unsuccessful.

“Don’t move, motherfucker! Run your shit! And you too, bitch!”

Lil Nut and Samantha stood looking at two guns pointed directly at their heads. Lil Nut began to slowly take off his jacket. Inside he was burning. He couldn’t believe he was this stupid. He knew he was going to lose his life. He could see it in the eyes of the leader. Although he and Samantha gave them what they wanted, Lil Nut couldn’t shake what his gut was trying to tell him. He thought about his mother and how she would take the news of his murder. He thought about his father and how disappointed he’d be in him.

If he could do the night all over, after he jumped out of the car he never would have gone to the party knowing that his two friends had set him up last year. He should have left and waited in the cut, and then bodied both Lamiek and Lite. Why would he still go to the party and still be friends with the wolves? Now it was going to cost him his life.

Lil Nut knew that if he was going to leave this earth before his time, he was going to take someone with him. In one swift movement, he jumped in front of Samantha, reached for his gun, and began busting shots. But the leader was too quick. He squeezed off, and Lil Nut took one slug in the chest. As gunshots rang out in the small hallway, Samantha’s screams echoed.

When the smoke cleared, Lil Nut had managed to shoot off six rounds. The leader was grazed in his face, but it wasn’t a life threatening wound. The robbers fled the scene.

However, Lil Nut wasn’t so lucky. He lay in Samantha’s arms with his chest blown open, gasping for air. He couldn’t speak and could hardly keep his eyes open.

Samantha pushed him off her and ran inside the apartment to get help. She personally dialed 911 for the ambulance. When she hung up she ran back outside to comfort Lil Nut. His eyes glanced around wildly. Everyone stood around gawking at him, and this infuriated Samantha.

“Get out of his face!” she screamed as she took off her sweater and began to apply pressure to his wound. Noticing the gun, she picked it up and told Lamiek to get rid of it.

“GG, go inside and bring me a soapy rag!” Samantha screamed. “Hurry!”

GG did as she was told, and when she came back, Samantha began to wash the gun powder residue off of Lil Nut’s hands. If he lived, she didn’t want him to catch a case behind this robbery. All she kept thinking about was that GG’s brother Chris was behind it. Samantha knew how trifling he could be, and she knew he saw dollar signs when Lil Nut walked up into the house party.

As the paramedics wheeled Lil Nut out of the building, all Lamiek could think about was how his plan had gone terribly wrong. When he called his cousin Malik from Canarsie, Brooklyn, he gave him specific instructions. Those instructions were to come to the party, follow Lamiek, Lite, and Lil Nut out of the party, and rob all three of them. No one was supposed to get hurt. Definitely not murdered. And with all of them getting robbed, it would take suspicion off of Lamiek. When Lamiek and Lite got separated from Lil Nut, Lamiek quickly called his cousin to let him know the change in plans. There was no way Lamiek could let Lil Nut walk around in that coat when Lamiek didn’t have one.

Lamiek knew that if Lil Nut survived—and by the looks of him that was impossible—then Lamiek was a dead man walking. Lil Nut may be a lot of things, but stupid wasn’t one of them. Lamiek had pushed the envelope one time too many. And if Lil Nut hadn’t caught the slipup in the cab, he surely wouldn’t miss this setup.

***

To everyone’s amazement, Lil Nut’s young age helped him survive the attack. He had to stay in the hospital for three months, and only his mother was allowed to visit him. The police kept a 24-hour security guard posted outside his door just in case the men came back to finish what they’d started.

Lil Nut didn’t allow Samantha to visit him, but unbeknownst to everyone, they kept in touch by telephone. Samantha turned out to be an asset. Lil Nut was in the hospital for five weeks before he was strong enough to have a conversation. He had to go through extensive physical therapy, and for months he had a shit bag and also had to urinate in a cup, but his mother was there every step of the way.

When he finally did speak to Samantha, she had a wealth of information for him. She played GG by telling her that Lil Nut told her he was going to kill her once he got better, because he knew she set him up. This plan worked, because GG spilled the beans and told Samantha that she didn’t have to worry or look over her shoulders, because it was Lamiek who set up Lil Nut. That was a shock to Samantha, because she always thought it was GG and Chris. Still, she didn’t know if this information was true, but she couldn’t wait to tell Lil Nut to see what he thought.

GG also said that Lamiek was going to try to get her Gucci bag and earrings back, but Samantha was no dummy. She knew GG was trying to sell her a dream. When GG told Samantha that as soon as Lil Nut got released from the hospital there was a ready-made killer waiting to murder him, Samantha was scared.

GG told her that Lamiek went to this big time drug dealer named Blue Bug and told him of Lil Nut’s plan to rob him, and Blue Bug promised to take care of Lil Nut. That way Lamiek wouldn’t have to put in the dirty work, and he also felt good knowing that his life wouldn’t be in any more danger once Blue Bug killed Lil Nut.

“That’s all the information I got. I hope it helps you stay safe,” Samantha explained to Lil Nut.

“Well most of it I already knew, but I’m glad that you confirmed it. I know what I got to do. I’ll be all right.”

Lil Nut couldn’t understand how he could fall in love with a girl he’d only kissed once, but he was sure that he did love her. Each day the thought of being with her for the rest of his life gave him the strength to work hard toward his rehabilitation. When his physical therapist told him to do one more round, he did two. He needed to get his strength back. He had a few scores to settle. Three, to be precise.

Finally Lil Nut was released from the hospital, only he didn’t head home. He went to stay with his Aunt Mary in Queens, away from the violence. Out of his mother’s two sisters, Mary was the one who had her shit together. He was still recuperating, and wasn’t ready for the big battle he would face once he showed himself on the streets again.

Samantha took the train and a bus over to his house, and as the days became warmer, their relationship blossomed. He realized he couldn’t keep putting Samantha off, pretending like he didn’t have the energy or strength to make love. She could tell that he was stronger than ever. In his aunt’s basement he bench pressed two hundred pounds. Although he was muscular before the shooting, he had bulked up even more. But Lil Nut was still nervous the first time they made love.

As he lay on his back on the small bench with two hundred pounds gripped in the palm of his large hands, Samantha came over, sat on his groin, and began to grind her pussy on his flaccid penis.

“What are you doing?” Lil Nut asked.

“What does it look like?”

Lil Nut just smiled as his dick began to respond. He put the heavy weight down and motioned for her to lie on the mattress that was on the floor in the corner. Quickly Samantha obliged.

“Take off your pants,” he instructed.

Samantha lay back and began to remove her pants and panties as Lil Nut towered over her. He removed his shirt, and she saw the large scar on his chest where the bullet had entered for the first time. That vision was quickly replaced when he took off his sweatpants and boxers and revealed a large, erect penis.

Neither one of them said a word as Lil Nut slowly positioned himself between Samantha’s legs. Applying steady pressure, he lowered himself deeper into her tight walls and began to thrust his hips in and out. Soft moans escaped Samantha’s mouth as his dick gently brushed up against her G-spot.

Samantha’s grip around Lil Nut’s waist got tighter as her pleasure increased. Her long fingernails began to dig into his firm, round ass, and he encouraged her by kissing her deeply and passionately. The young couple experienced an orgasm and lay still for long moments, reveling in their shared bliss. When Lil Nut grabbed Samantha and wrapped his strong arms around her waist, she felt loved.